Manhattan Beach police said on Wednesday they have identified a girl believed to be responsible for at least one of the postings on the anonymous messaging app Yik Yak that caused the closure of Mira Costa High School.
The girl, who is not a student at the school or any other Manhattan Beach Unified School District campus, was interviewed but was not arrested, according to Officer Stephanie Martin.
Martin said police are trying to determine if other people were involved in the postings, which led to the school being closed on Tuesday and today. Police said the postings began with vague and non-specific messages on Monday, but then became more threatening.
The school is scheduled to reopen on Thursday, according to principal Ben Dale.
“We will be outlining orderly entry and exit, increased security and police presence, available counseling, what students will be allowed to bring and carry and what movement will be allowed on campus during class time,” Dale wrote.
The school was placed on lockdown for about an hour Monday, and security was stepped up, following the first anonymous threat on Yik Yak.
The post read, “If you go to Costa you should watch out very closely at school today,” police said.
On Monday night, police — in consultation with Dale — notified parents that classes would be canceled Tuesday, after a second threat was posted, with the author indicating that Monday was just a “drill.”
The last in the series of missives issued via the social media site Monday night came shortly before 9 p.m., warning that most high school shooters had issued warnings before carrying out their threats, but no one ever noticed.
Martin pointed out that while the initial message did not seem so explicitly threatening, the last one could easily be interpreted that way.
Tuesday’s campus closure also forced cancellation of a planned scholar breakfast and all athletic and other after-school activities.
— City News Service